Features
NEW ANCHOR ALERT
Good news for skippers of yachts attempting to anchor in Illetas!!
The new Anchor Alert
During the last quarter of 2003 it was difficult to keep up with the next yacht to be lost or seriously damaged in the anchorage at Illetas. Illetas anchorage has notoriously bad holding. However the bad holding in weed over hard sand is not uncommon. So what´s the answer?
Many will argue that certain anchors are better than others. It is important to use the correct scope of chain to pull the anchor parallel to the seabed and dig the anchor in and then the yacht will swing around the anchor. The next issue then is that when the wind changes and the yacht swings the anchor could be pulled out. Likewise if you have set your GPS anchor alarm the position of the yacht could have moved up to two chain scopes away from where you set it and the alarm will sound.
Anchor Alert
Anchoring was all very imprecise and stressful until the advent of "Anchor Alert".
This is a revolutionary new electronic Anchor Monitoring System. It is revolutionary is that it is a wireless system consisting of a transponder connected directly to your anchor. Sensors in the anchor transponder unit detect anchor movement and wirelessly communicate that movement to the yacht unit.
Components
The system is composed of three components; the yacht unit, the yacht transducer and the anchor transponder.
The yacht unit provides the onboard user interface for system setup, information display and the primary anchor movement alarm. The yacht transducer is available as either thru-hull or over-the-side with several transducer mounting options. The transducer provides the yacht side of the communication with the anchor.
The anchor transponder connects directly in-line between your anchor and the anchor chain. It provides anchor movement and distance information to the yacht unit.
Features
Thus unlike the GPS anchor alarm, the yacht is free to swing around the anchor without causing false alarms because this system only alarms on actual anchor movements above a user set threshold.
The anchor transponder unit is housed in a rugged 30cm x 5cm waterproof enclosure that is rated for depths of 65m with a max 20-ton breaking strain. It is powered by 2 "D" cell batteries that provide an operating life of up to 60 days.
The anchor unit switches on automatically when it is immersed in water and it only takes a few seconds to make contact with the yacht transducer. Immediately you can see the straight-line distance to the anchor.
Once the anchor is set to your satisfaction the movement threshold is set and a bar graph on the display shows any movement of the anchor on the seabed around that threshold.
The unit is very simple to use with only five buttons and an optional remote alarm.
This is a great new product and is yet again another novel use of technology that should improve safety and peace of mind.
Disclaimer: it only works if someone is on board and can hear the alarm!
For further information contact: Roger Horner or Erik Nieuwmeijer at E3 Systems. Tel: +34 971 404208/400738 Fax: +34 971 404431
email: roger@e3s.com or erik@e3s.com
web: www.e3s.com